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Home » City guide

2 Days in Dublin: The Itinerary We’d Actually Do (2026)

Published: 27th May 2018 by Laurence Norah - 11 Comments

Kilmainham Gaol Dublin

We’ve lost count of how many times we’ve been back to Dublin. It keeps pulling us in, sometimes as the start of a longer Ireland trip, sometimes as a long weekend on its own, sometimes as a stopover that quietly turned into something more. Over those visits we’ve walked most of the city on foot, […]

3 Days in Vienna Itinerary: Our Pick of the Sights (2026)

Published: 15th January 2018 by Laurence Norah - 46 Comments

3 Days in Vienna - 3 Day Vienna Itinerary

We’ve been back to Vienna a handful of times now, and three days is the sweet spot for a first visit. You get all three palaces (Hofburg, Belvedere, Schönbrunn), an afternoon in a Viennese coffee house, and enough breathing room that you’re not chasing a timetable. Below is how we’d structure it for first-timers, with […]

2 Days in Paris: A Realistic Itinerary for the Perfect Weekend

Published: 20th December 2017 by Laurence Norah - 93 Comments

2 days in Paris

Paris is one of our favourite cities in Europe, and one we come back to time and again. We’ve visited for long weekends like this one and for longer stays as part of a wider European itinerary, and over those trips we’ve worked out what a two-day visit can realistically hold. Two days is enough […]

3 Day Rome Itinerary: A First-Timer’s Plan (With Map)

Published: 13th August 2017 by Laurence Norah - 234 Comments

Three days in Rome is the right amount. One day and you see the highlights and nothing else, two days means sprinting, and four starts to drag for most people. I first came to Rome in 1995, and I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve been back since. Three days is the length I […]

2 Days in Vienna: A Complete Itinerary for a Weekend in the City

Published: 14th May 2017 by Laurence Norah - 52 Comments

Jess and I have been to Vienna many times, and every time we come back I’m reminded why we keep making the trip. Vienna has a way of being simultaneously grand and approachable. You can spend the morning wandering around a palace that was once the seat of one of the most powerful dynasties in […]

3 Days in Barcelona: A Complete Itinerary by Someone Who Keeps Going Back

Published: 3rd April 2017 by Laurence Norah - 83 Comments

Barcelona is a city that keeps pulling us back. Jess and I first visited in 2012, and we have been back multiple times since, always finding new corners to explore and old favourites to revisit. We think three days is the sweet spot for a first visit. It is enough time to see the major […]

Things to Do in Santa Fe New Mexico

Published: 12th March 2017 by Laurence Norah - 6 Comments

Located about an hour’s drive north of (the much bigger!) Albuquerque, Santa Fe has long been known as a laid back place that is popular with artists as well as folks looking to explore the outdoors. We’ve visited a number of times, and have always found plenty of things to do in Santa Fe. These […]

The Best Photography Spots in Barcelona

Published: 5th March 2017 by Laurence Norah - 12 Comments

Barcelona is definitely one of my favourite European cities, and one I love to photograph. I’ve been a professional travel photographer since 2010, and I also teach an online travel photography course, so guides like this one are a favourite part of the job. Today, as part of my series of photography location guides, I’m […]

2 Days in Edinburgh: A Perfect 2-Day Itinerary From People Who Lived There

Published: 1st March 2017 by Laurence Norah - 16 Comments

Sunset in Edinburgh from Calton Hill

Edinburgh was our home for four happy years, and it is still one of our favourite cities anywhere in the world. We lived a short walk from the Royal Mile, saw in five Hogmanays, and worked our way through more festival seasons, whisky bars and cold-but-glorious Calton Hill sunsets than I can count. This guide […]

Best Restaurants in Albuquerque: A Former Local’s Picks

Published: 30th January 2017 by Laurence Norah - 15 Comments

Jess used to live in Albuquerque, and even after she moved away, the two of us have kept coming back. We return most years for the Balloon Fiesta, to visit friends, and to road trip around New Mexico. So while neither of us lives in the city now, we have spent a lot of time […]

22 Best Things to Do in Albuquerque, New Mexico

Published: 27th November 2016 by Laurence Norah - 46 Comments

Looking for things to do in Albuquerque? We’ve spent a lot of time in this city over the years. Jess used to live here, we’ve visited on multiple occasions as part of our Route 66 road trip, and we once spent five weeks exploring New Mexico with Albuquerque as our base. We’ve also been to […]

Oyster vs Contactless: The Best Way to Pay for London Transport

Published: 13th November 2016 by Laurence Norah - 70 Comments

London transport

I lived in central London for two and a half years, and across countless commutes I paid for the Tube, the buses and the Overground with both an Oyster card and a contactless bank card. So here’s my answer to the Oyster versus contactless question: for almost every visitor, a contactless card or phone is […]

Things to Do in Edmonton: Our 2-Day Itinerary

Published: 4th November 2016 by Laurence Norah - 8 Comments

Somehow, in all my wanders, I hadn’t made it to Canada until a few years ago. This was a particularly nagging omission in my mind, largely because I’m a passionate landscape photographer, and, well, Canada has some pretty epic landscapes. So when the chance came up to visit Edmonton, Alberta’s capital, Jess and I jumped […]

Edinburgh in August 2026: A Local’s Guide to All Five Festivals

Published: 16th September 2016 by Laurence Norah - 2 Comments

We lived in Edinburgh for four years, and in that time we made it to all five of the festivals the city throws every August. We even managed to catch an event from each of the five in a single day. If I asked you to name the festival Edinburgh is best known for, I […]

How to Get Around London: A Guide to Public Transport in London

Published: 6th August 2016 by Laurence Norah - 27 Comments

London is a brilliant city to visit, with more to do than you could fit into a single trip. This guide isn’t about what to see though, it’s about how to get around once you’re here, which trips up a lot of first-time visitors. London has one of the best public transport networks in the […]

14 Unusual Things To Do In Edinburgh!

Published: 31st July 2016 by Laurence Norah - 1 Comment

Edinburgh is definitely one of our favourite cities in the UK, and it’s one where we lived for a number of years. There is a lot to do here, so much so that we’ve already penned a detailed post on how to spend two days in Edinburgh, as well as some of our favourite things […]

Visiting New Orleans for Mardi Gras: Our Guide From a Week in the City

Published: 29th June 2016 by Laurence Norah - 26 Comments

If you’ve been thinking about going to New Orleans for Mardi Gras, this guide should help you decide whether to go, when to go, and what to actually do once you’re there. If you’re planning the rest of your visit, our 3 day New Orleans itinerary walks through how to spend your time in the […]

2 Days in London: A Complete Itinerary from Someone Who Lived There

Published: 15th June 2016 by Laurence Norah - 78 Comments

I lived in central London for a couple of years, and Jess and I have been back more times than I can count since. If you handed me a pen right now and told me to sketch out two days in London for a first-time visitor, I’d have it drafted before the kettle boiled. That’s […]

Things to Do in Baton Rouge: Our Weekend Guide to Louisiana’s Capital

Published: 18th May 2016 by Laurence Norah - 8 Comments

Baton Rouge was not on our radar when we planned our road trip through the American South. We knew New Orleans was the destination everyone talked about, but Baton Rouge was on our route and we decided to stop. If New Orleans is on your route too, our 3 day New Orleans itinerary covers the […]

The Best Photography Locations in Paris: My Favourite Spots and How to Shoot Them

Published: 27th April 2016 by Laurence Norah - 14 Comments

Paris is easily one of my favourite cities in the world, and I’ve been photographing it for well over a decade. Every trip, I come back to the same spots and find new ways to shoot them, and every trip, I discover something new. This is not a list of 40 Instagram spots. This is […]

2 Days in Florence and Tuscany

Published: 10th March 2016 by Laurence Norah - 27 Comments

On multiple previous trips to Italy, I somehow failed to visit Florence. It turns out this was somewhat of an oversight, because, well, Florence is unbelievably pretty. Like, in your face, over the top, can’t quite believe it’s real pretty. Suffice to say, if you’re planning a trip to Italy, such as our 10 day […]

How to Spend 2 Days in Savannah Georgia

Published: 22nd February 2016 by Laurence Norah - 16 Comments

As part of our road trip through the Deep South (first stop Charleston), we spent time exploring Savannah, the oldest city in Georgia. We packed a lot into our visit: museums, historical homes, excellent food, musket firing demonstrations, and a face-to-face encounter with a mountain lion. Savannah has a lot going on. This guide is […]

What to Do in St. Petersburg, Russia: Everything You Need to See!

Published: 3rd February 2016 by Laurence Norah - 2 Comments

In 2015 we had the pleasure of taking a river cruise from St. Petersburg to Moscow with Gvidon Tours. You can read all about that experience, and my thoughts on cruising in Russia, in the post I wrote on the subject. As part of our trip, we got to spend a few days in both […]

Things to do In Charleston SC on a Weekend Getaway

Published: 23rd January 2016 by Laurence Norah - 15 Comments

Charleston, South Carolina, is the perfect city for a short getaway. We think that 2 days in Charleston would give you enough time to see the majority of the highlights, sample some of the incredible food on offer and even take in some of the surrounding attractions. With this in mind, we’ve put together this […]

Walking tours in Rome: How to See The Highlights of Rome

Published: 13th January 2016 by Laurence Norah - 1 Comment

Rome. The Eternal City. A place so stuffed with history that they’ve had to layer it, like a cake, sandwiched atop itself. Everywhere you look, history piles upon history, from thousands of years ago to the present day, all jostling for space in the city, and time on your itinerary. It’s one of our favorite […]

The Best Photography Locations in London

Published: 7th December 2015 by Laurence Norah - 11 Comments

As part of my on-going quest to find awesome photography locations around the world to share with you, I recently headed to London, a city I know and love, to see if I could put together a guide to the best photography locations in London. The bar has already been set high, with my guides […]

Is the Statue of Liberty + Ellis Island Tour Worth It? (2026)

Published: 1st November 2015 by Laurence Norah - 2 Comments

I love to wander a city. Preferably I’ll have my camera in hand, plenty of time, and a willingness to be sidetracked by anything interesting. Most of the time this works out well. Sometimes it ends with me having a lot of photos and very little idea of what I was actually looking at. Whilst […]

Things to Do in Oxford in One Day: A 2026 Itinerary Guide

Published: 25th September 2015 by Laurence Norah - 15 Comments

I lived in and around Oxford for a number of years, and I generally felt like a tourist most of that time too. You can’t really help it. You’re walking to the shops and suddenly the Radcliffe Camera appears around a corner, and you stop and stare at it like you’ve never seen it before. […]

The Best Things to Do in Kensington & South Kensington, London

Published: 30th July 2015 by Laurence Norah - 7 Comments

Kensington and South Kensington make up one of the best neighbourhoods in London for a day out, and I say that as someone who lived in the capital for years and keeps coming back for more. Within a short walk you’ve got three of London’s finest museums (all free), a royal palace, one of the […]

How to Spend a Weekend in Cambria, California

Published: 17th June 2015 by Laurence Norah - 18 Comments

During our time living in California, we spent a lot of weekends exploring the coastal communities between San Francisco and Los Angeles. One of our favourites was Cambria, a small town on the Central Coast that we came back to more than once. Cambria sits roughly halfway between San Francisco and LA, around three to […]

Things to Do in Redding California

Published: 22nd May 2015 by Laurence Norah - 4 Comments

Up in the northeastern part of California, around a 3.5 hour drive from San Francisco, is the city of Redding, found in the Shasta Cascade region. This part of California is excellent for lovers of the outdoors and landscape photographers like me, offering mountains, lakes, potentially live volcanoes and of course, hiking and photo opportunities […]

A Walk Through Leuven

Published: 1st May 2015 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

Today’s post is from Sofie, who writes at Wonderful Wanderings. You can read more about Sofie at the end of the post, in the meantime, take a walk with her through her current home town of Leuven in Belgium! While I’ve only been living in Leuven for about four years now, I’ve come to the […]

Things to Do in Oulu, Finland: Is It Worth Visiting? (2026 Guide)

Published: 24th April 2015 by Laurence Norah - 1 Comment

Air guitar. We’ve all done it. Our favourite song comes on the radio and before we know it we’re strumming along with the best of them. My personal favourite is actually air drumming, but that’s a story for another day. The reason I bring it up is that Oulu, up on Finland’s north-west coast, is […]

Visiting Walla Walla: Wineries, Art and a Hotel

Published: 4th April 2015 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

A few weeks ago, if you’d asked me where Walla Walla was, I would probably have guessed somewhere in Australia. It just has that sound about it. Obviously I would have been entirely wrong. It turns out that Walla Walla is in Washington State in the US, about four hours inland from Seattle, and there’s […]

Top 10 Things To Do In Santa Cruz, California

Published: 27th March 2015 by Laurence Norah - 8 Comments

From San Francisco, an easy day trip is to pop across to the gorgeous town of Santa Cruz, famed for its boardwalk, laid back vibe and surfing opportunities galore. If you are spending time in the city first, see our guide to the photography spots in San Francisco. We’ve visited a number of times, and […]

1 Day in Tallinn: Itinerary Ideas

Published: 13th March 2015 by Laurence Norah - 10 Comments

We almost didn’t get to spend a day in Tallinn. Waking at 5.00am on a January morning in Helsinki, we looked outside to see flurries of snow and temperatures well below freezing. A thirty minute walk in the dark to the ferry terminal didn’t seem like a hugely appealing activity, particularly as neither of us […]

What to do in Rauma in Winter

Published: 6th March 2015 by Laurence Norah - 1 Comment

Visiting a summer town in the dead of winter is a weird experience, and something we experiened when we visited Rauma in winter. To start with, I’m fairly sure we were the only people staying in the hotel. The town’s streets were oddly, almost eerily quiet, at any time of the day or night. The […]

7 Things to Do In Dubai

Published: 22nd December 2014 by Laurence Norah - 2 Comments

Dubai. I’ve recently visited for the second time. The first time round, I spent a lot of time in a conference hall talking to the travel industry about travel blogging. My glimpses of the city were snatched from the air conditioned confines of taxis, and my impression was of a shiny land in the midst […]

Things to Do in Milan: Our Favourite Attractions, Food and Tips

Published: 12th October 2014 by Laurence Norah - 8 Comments

We’ve visited Milan a number of times over the years. We have friends who live there, which means we’ve had the chance to explore beyond the obvious tourist trail and get to know the city properly. Milan is Italy’s second largest city and the capital of Lombardy. Most people know it as a fashion capital, […]

Things to do in Besalu Spain

Published: 29th September 2014 by Laurence Norah - 6 Comments

BesalĂş is one of the most popular medieval villages in the Catalonia region of Spain. It’s easy to reach from Girona or as a day trip from Barcelona, and we’ve visited a number of times. Based on our experiences, we wanted to share with you a guide to things to do in Besalu – beyond […]

One Day in Helsinki: What to Do, What to Skip (2026)

Published: 8th September 2014 by Laurence Norah - 4 Comments

One day in Helsinki is enough to feel like you’ve seen the place. Not enough to feel like you’ve got to know it, but enough to tick off the things that actually matter and leave with a handle on what Helsinki is. I’ve been here several times now, in summer and in winter, and a […]

Common Paris Scams – How To Recognise and Avoid Scams in Paris

Published: 13th July 2014 by Laurence Norah - 19 Comments

Paris is one of our favourite cities to visit, but it does have a bit of a reputation as having a number of common scams. In this post, we’re going to go through a number of common Paris scams so you can enjoy your time in the city, and not worry about falling prey to […]

What to Do in Poznan in Summer

Published: 4th July 2014 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

Cities change throughout the seasons; that’s nothing new. And although travel guides always debate the “best time to visit”, in the end they often admit that each season has its own benefits, its celebrations, its food, its fashions. We fell in love with Poznan during our first visit last November, but we weren’t prepared to […]

Seven Summer Festivals in Poznan

Published: 19th June 2014 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

In Europe, summer time is of course also festival time. There is – pardon my French – a crap load of festivals, and people will travel a long way to attend them. Some of these festivals have become a cult thing to go to, some have disappeared again despite having been popular, some are tiny […]

Tidbits of Galway City!

Published: 13th June 2014 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

The Irish city of Galway has many enchanting properties, and although I hardly spent a full day there, it was enough to make me decide that I’ll definitely be back one day; hopefully sooner than later. While I might not be able to list everything there is that you can see and do in Galway […]

1 Day in Athens: An Itinerary

Published: 5th June 2014 by Laurence Norah - 6 Comments

Athens! When I landed, I have to admit to feeling a frisson of excitement. It was my first visit to the city which essentially sparked the beginning of the western world as we know it, and I couldn’t wait to get my eyes on some of the sights that I already felt I knew so […]

What To Do In Rio de Janeiro

Published: 16th May 2014 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

As a big fan of killing two birds with one stone (figuratively), I am always pleased when travelling to a location coincides with something else I had wanted to do. Like visiting a friend or relative who happens to live there, or attend a conference or a work-shop, or go to see a favourite band […]

Getting High In Quito

Published: 9th April 2014 by Laurence Norah - 1 Comment

We did get very high in Ecuador’s capital Quíto, my oh my! 2,850 metres above the sea level. That makes Quito the second-highest capital in the world, right after La Paz in Bolivia (3,640m). But Bolivia cheated with the title, because they have several capitals (I see, how convenient!). There. Team Quito. The altitude If […]

What to Do in Otavalo, Ecuador – A Detailed Travel Guide

Published: 31st March 2014 by Laurence Norah - 10 Comments

Otavalo in Ecuador is a pretty little town, a couple of hours bus ride north of Quito. It’s largely famous for its market, which, to be honest, didn’t totally blow us away. It was very nice and all, but it wasn’t exactly a reason to visit this particular town over many others in Ecuador and […]

The Best Bars in Poznań for Beer: 7 Picks for 2026

Published: 7th March 2014 by Laurence Norah - 2 Comments

I visited PoznaĹ„ twice in 2012, hosted by the City of Poznan, and spent both trips working my way through its bars. The Polish craft beer scene was just finding its feet then, and Poznan was already one of the easier cities in the country to see what good Polish brewing looked like up close: […]

One Day in London: What to See, Do and Not Miss

Published: 3rd March 2014 by Laurence Norah - 74 Comments

I lived in central London for a couple of years, and Jess and I still visit regularly. So when I’m asked what to do with just one day in the city, I have a pretty well-tested answer. This is a walking itinerary that takes you from the Tower of London to the West End, covering […]

Things to Do In Dublin

Published: 16th December 2013 by Laurence Norah - 3 Comments

Dublin is a fantastic city to visit – you’re pretty much always guaranteed to have a good time when you visit the Irish capital! In our guide to things to do in Dublin, we’re going to share with you some of our favourite sights and activities in the city, to you give you some inspiration […]

Things to Do in Poznań: 6 Picks Worth Your Time in This Polish Gem

Published: 22nd November 2013 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

PoznaĹ„ is one of those Polish cities that gets quietly skipped. The big-name picks pull all the attention (KrakĂłw, Warsaw, GdaĹ„sk), and PoznaĹ„ sits between Berlin and Warsaw being one of the best stops in western Poland that nobody talks about. I visited back in 2012, hosted by the City of Poznan, and came home […]

The Best Cities to Visit in England: 13 Picks From a Local Who’s Lived in Five

Published: 15th August 2013 by Laurence Norah - 2 Comments

London Eye Heart

I’ve been writing about England for Finding the Universe for over a decade, and I’ve lived in five of the cities on this list: London, Bath, Oxford, Newcastle, and Nottingham (the last one as a student, which I’m counting). I grew up in Cornwall, so the West Country is home turf too. All of which […]

Discovering Oslo, Part II: inside

Published: 3rd June 2013 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

After Part I, which was all about discovering Oslo on a beautiful day out, now comes Part II, in which we find that Norway’s capital boasts so many fantastic museums and exhibitions that bad weather is absolutely no let-down. The only problem might be that you don’t even know where to start. But have no […]

What To Do In Bergen, Norway

Published: 23rd May 2013 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

If you’re heading to Norway, then a visit to the town of Bergen on the coast needs to be on your short list. And in this guide to what to do in Bergen, we’re going to explain why. Bergen is home to a UNESCO listed old town center, stunning mountains, and a number of excellent […]

Discovering Oslo, Part I: outside

Published: 16th May 2013 by Laurence Norah - 2 Comments

When we arrived in Oslo, the weather forecast announced that we would have a sunny day and a rainy day during our stay in Norway’s capital. Ever the brilliant organisers we decided we would cleverly visit all the outside sights on the sunny day, and the inside sights on the rainy day. And even though […]

A self-guided tour of Copenhagen

Published: 2nd May 2013 by Laurence Norah - 6 Comments

There are definitely more comfortable places to sit than on Hans Christian Andersen’s left knee. On top of that, instead of telling me a story out of the book that is resting on his right knee, he is staring over to the Tivoli, the famous theme park, completely ignoring me. Well, I can’t say that’s […]

Four Things Not to Miss In Ghent

Published: 25th April 2013 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

Ghent is in Belgium. Which, other than chips, Audrey Hepburn, chocolate and a statue of a small boy peeing, isn’t exactly famous for anything. It’s almost famous for not being famous for anything in fact. Which is a bit of a shame really, because Belgium has a lot to offer, the small town of Ghent […]

Things to Do in Berlin

Published: 22nd April 2013 by Laurence Norah - 3 Comments

Berlin is a hell of city. I’ve had the privilege of visiting a number of times, and each time it has delighted and educated me in equal parts. Part of this is due to the amount of recent history, from the horrors of the second world war, through to the collapse of the wall. It’s […]

What to do in Stockholm

Published: 11th April 2013 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

Five minutes after our arrival in Stockholm Centraal, the main station, I realized that anyone who has ever asked me if I was from Sweden (instead of Germany), has really given me a huge compliment by likening me to these Nordic goddesses. Wow. There is an unusual amount of really tall, really slender, really blonde […]

Things to Do in Kanchanaburi: A First-Timer’s Guide to the River Kwai and Beyond

Published: 4th March 2013 by Laurence Norah - 8 Comments

I planned on spending two days in Kanchanaburi. I stayed eight, and I still left with a list of things I hadn’t got to. On that trip I walked across the bridge over the River Kwai early, before the tour buses rolled in, sat almost alone among the headstones at Chungkai War Cemetery, swam under […]

Exploring Thailand’s Gorgeous Trang Region

Published: 14th February 2013 by Laurence Norah - 2 Comments

A bit of geography for you. Arguably Thailand’s most famous coastline is the Andaman. It’s the bit that you see in the postcards – impossibly pristine waters, beautiful long-tail boats, and those lumps of limestone that rise out of the sea like giant teeth. It’s home to islands, beaches, and people. Islands with names like […]

Why you might want to visit Nakhon Si Thammarat

Published: 4th February 2013 by Laurence Norah - 3 Comments

Before I came to Thailand, if you had asked me to name any Thai city beginning with the word “Nakhon”, I would have been fairly stuck. I’m guessing that you might be a bit like me in this regard. If not, maximum points, well done. As it is, our adventures in Thailand have taken us […]

What to See in Ayutthaya: 6 Essential Temples and a 1-Day Itinerary

Published: 7th January 2013 by Laurence Norah - 14 Comments

Reclining Buddha at sunset Thailand

If I asked you to name the largest city in the world around the year 1700, I wonder where you might suggest. London? Paris? Beijing? Cairo? I’m going to guess that the city of Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya (or simply Ayutthaya, as everyone calls it today) didn’t make your shortlist. Well, by around 1700 Ayutthaya […]

1 Day in Barcelona: A Realistic 2026 Itinerary

Published: 10th September 2012 by Laurence Norah - 22 Comments

One day in Barcelona isn’t a lot of time, but with the right plan it’s enough to see two of the city’s most unforgettable buildings, wander one of Europe’s best-preserved medieval quarters, and finish with sunset views from a hilltop castle. The trick is knowing what to prioritise and, just as importantly, what to leave […]

Tips for Visiting Europe in the Summer

Published: 20th July 2012 by Laurence Norah - 1 Comment

Europe. It’s jam packed with incredible places to visit, and the cities are no exception to this rule. From the gondola clad waterways of Venice, to the Gaudi wackiness in Barcelona, to the romance that is Paris – there is truly something for everyone. The problem with this mass appeal is that the masses are […]

Barcelona to Girona and Figueres: How to Do This Day Trip

Published: 17th July 2012 by Laurence Norah - 2 Comments

Girona and Figueres are the two towns most Barcelona visitors think about pairing into one day out, and the question we get asked most is whether you can do both well in a day. You can. We first did this trip years ago on an organised coach tour, and we’ve driven it ourselves many times […]

Barcelona’s Gothic Quarter: A Photographer’s Self-Guided Walking Route

Published: 10th June 2012 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

Jess and I have been going back to Barcelona since 2012, and on every trip I end up in the same place: the Gothic Quarter, camera in hand, taking the same wrong turns I took the last time and being quietly pleased about it. I’ve photographed a lot of old cities over the years, and […]

The Best Viewpoints in Barcelona: A Photographer’s Guide to the Views

Published: 8th May 2012 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

Jess and I have been coming back to Barcelona since 2012, and somewhere on every trip I end up chasing the same thing: the city seen from above, with a camera in my hand and the light doing something worth waiting for. I’ve shot it from the hill at Park GĂĽell, from the old gun […]

In Photos: Gaudi’s Barcelona

Published: 27th April 2012 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

GaudĂ­. It’s kind of hard to visit Barcelona without spending your time gaping in awe at the architectural and artistic genius that he left behind all over the city. A great deal of my week in Barcelona was therefore spent, gaping in awe, at his many truly incredible constructions. As well as gaping, I was […]

Things I didn’t know about Barcelona!

Published: 24th April 2012 by Laurence Norah - 3 Comments

I’ve just spent a week visiting Barcelona. I’d like to say that I did a whole bunch of research before setting off, but to be honest, I’m not that great at research. For example, I managed to get through an entire University degree without stepping inside a University library. Plus, I like a place to […]

Angouleme–wanders around the ramparts

Published: 20th April 2012 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

This is my third post on AngoulĂŞme! Who would have thought one French town could hold so much appeal? Admittedly, AngoulĂŞme cheated slightly, by seducing me with awesome street art. That’s a good way for any city to get my attention, and more than one post. See Berlin’s street art for example. So I have […]

One Day in Venice: The Perfect Itinerary for Making the Most of Your Time

Published: 13th April 2012 by Laurence Norah - 42 Comments

I have been to Venice more times than I can count, and I even got married there. One of my earlier (and favorite!) travel memories is having St. Mark’s Square to myself during a massive thunderstorm. So it’s fair to say I have some feelings about this city. The most important thing I can tell […]

Perigueux: what have the Romans ever done for us?

Published: 18th February 2012 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

If the title of this blog post makes little sense to you, then you should pause your whole life for a couple of hours and go watch Monty Python’s Life of Brian. Done that? Good. Perigueux is a town with a remarkably hard to spell name in the heart of France’s Dordogne. It is the […]

Face off: five European cities duel to the death

Published: 1st February 2012 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

Seine River Cruise Paris_by_Laurence Norah

  I was going to write a nice post about my five favourite cities in Europe, but then I figured that wasn’t quite as exciting as putting them to the test in a knockout and seeing which came up trumps. Naturally, this will be an entirely objective post, based solely on fact. Each round will […]

What to Do in Paris

Published: 23rd December 2011 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

Ah, Paris. The city of love. A city that is a delight to visit at any time of year, be it for a sunny summers day stroll along the Seine or for a wander through the festively lit streets in Winter. Paris is a city that I’m deeply fond of in Europe. It vies with […]

Top 11 Things to Do in Rome

Published: 16th December 2011 by Laurence Norah - 24 Comments

We’ve been lucky enough to visit Rome numerous times, and every time we visit we find more things to do in the eternal city. We’ve already written detailed itineraries for visiting Rome, including how to spend 3 days in Rome, 2 days in Rome and even just a day in Rome. In this post though, […]

Brantôme – France’s Venice?

Published: 3rd December 2011 by Laurence Norah - 2 Comments

In the northerly part of the Dordogne region of France, on the river Dromme, sits the town of BrantĂ´me. BrantĂ´me is often referred to as the Venice of France, and having visited, I can confirm that it isn’t that much like Venice, and really doesn’t need to sell itself as such to be a worthwhile […]

A day out in Luxembourg

Published: 3rd October 2011 by Laurence Norah - 5 Comments

Some quick Luxembourg facts for you. Luxembourg is one of the smallest countries in Europe, yet is counted as the third richest country in the world. It is the only Grand Duchy in the world, which from what I understand, means that it is ruled over by a Grand Duke. The most important Luxembourg fact […]

Wanders through Wellington

Published: 31st July 2011 by Laurence Norah - 4 Comments

Having babbled on at some length as to the virtues of Dunedin, it is now time to turn my attention to my other favourite Kiwi city – which also happens to be the countries capital – the city of Wellington. Wellington is tucked away on the southern tip of the North island, and most travellers […]

Whale Crazy Kaikoura

Published: 27th July 2011 by Laurence Norah - 4 Comments

I should probably preface this post with a note that, title aside, I didn’t see any actual Whales in Kaikoura, despite quite a lot of frenzied staring out to sea. What I did see was a town that is somewhat obsessed by these creatures, and which shares it’s obsession with over a million visitors a […]

Dunedin in a day

Published: 14th July 2011 by Laurence Norah - 7 Comments

I don’t normally write too much about the cities of New Zealand. This is partly because I’m mostly travelling this country for its epic scenery – which it has in bucketloads – and partly because, if I’m honest, New Zealand cities don’t normally do much for me. Don’t get me wrong. They certainly have their […]

Highlights of the Wairarapa

Published: 5th June 2011 by Laurence Norah - 4 Comments

You know those friends of yours who come back from some “life changing” trip, and bore you to tears for ages on end with the joy of travel and how incredibly awesome the whole thing was, slide show and all? (Yes, I appreciate a travel blog is a very similar thing. Bear with me.) Well, […]

Auckland’s volcanoes

Published: 10th October 2010 by Laurence Norah - Leave a Comment

Auckland, I have learnt, is a city built on no less than fifty volcanoes, not all of which are dormant. This means two things. One, that I could get blown into tiny lava covered pieces of myself at any moment, and two, that there is some excellent hilly walking to be done. We set off, […]

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Laurence and Jessica Norah

Hi there! We're Laurence and Jessica Norah. We've been running this site since 2010 as full time professional travel bloggers. We visit all the places we write about personally, and all our content is based on our own first hand travel experiences. We also take all the photos you see on our sites. So grab a drink, dive in, and read on! You can also find out more about us here. Comic included.
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